Robertson Stave Mill once prosperous business in Gallatin

The Robertson Stave Mill, a prosperous business operating in the 1960s, was located north of Gallatin. It was bringing from $4,000 to $5,000 into the county each week. Around 40 men were employed in the operation.

Two full-time timber buyers scoured the country and bought standing timber to keep the mill supplied. Ten crews of two or three men each cut and hauled the stave bolts. About 15 men were employed at the mill, sawing, stacking, and hauling. At this time, the mill had recently been converted from the cutting of headings to the cutting of staves in the rough. A special barrel saw had been moved in from Arkansas.

Timber for the mill came from a wide area in North Missouri. White and bur oak came from as far south as Richmond and as far north as Iowa. The best staves came from the white oak timber from Virginia. The local timber wasn’t of the best quality, but good freight rates made it worth working. Only those two types of timber were used because they made the best barrels.

Timber was brought to the local mill in 39-inch bolts in length and could weigh as much as 150 to 200 pounds each. A single cut from a tree could yield from two to four bolts depending on the size of the tree. Two saws exactly 36 ½ inches apart trimmed the bolts to exactly the proper length. They were then fed into the stave or drum saw which cut the staves and put the right curve in them.

Staves were stacked for curing with 200 to the stack. Buyers inspected the stacked staves before they’d bid on them and bought them by the car load. A car load of staves contained approximately 15,000 pieces. In a good day the Gallatin mill could saw up to 4,500 top grade staves.

Most of the staves were bought by Seagrams and National Distilleries and shipped from Gallatin to Louisville, Ky., or Pine Bluff, Ark. Some bolts were bought from independent local contractors who bought the lumber and cut and hauled their own. The low quality staves could be used for vinegar barrels.

After sawing, the rough staves had to stand a rigid inspection. Knots, cracks, or any fault had to be thrown out. Special care had to be used in sawing to make sure the grain was jut right in the finished stave. An improperly sawed stave could leak.

Among the problems created was the sawdust because it was produced in such large quantities they couldn’t give it away fast enough. The inferior lumber of the staves was sold cheaply for firewood.

Source: The Gallatin Democrat, “Stave Mill Operation Sold to Lions,” March 10, 1960.